Head of the class: Can't make it to PTO meetings at your child's school? Here are some other ways to show your support

The school year is in full swing, complete with homework and sports, plays and parties, friends and field trips. It's an exciting time of year, but for teachers, it may require extra time and money on their part.

That's where you, as a working parent, can help.

"Parent involvement is vital to our district, whether it be time, financial or resources," says Amy McDonald, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Public Schools Foundation. "We have several areas people can get involved with the Cape Schools Foundation, which helps all buildings. All of our buildings have various needs, and through donations and community support, we help fund those needs."

Here are some ways to show your support and ease the burden on your favorite teacher and school:

* Volunteer. "We have a very successful volunteer program in our district, and we encourage parents to have participation in many different ways," says Merideth Pobst, director of communications and the foundation for the Jackson School District.

Cutline:Cutline Email/Stock:Southeast Missourian file photoCutline:Scarlet Winans, a first-grade teacher at Blanchard Elementary School, arranges essential information for her students starting school in Cape Girardeau.Cutline Email/Stock:

Chaperones and volunteers are always needed for school activities, including dances, sporting events, field trips, Junior Achievement, Read to Succeed and more. Classroom assistants and library aides are also needed.

Ask your child's teacher if they have a volunteer sign-up form so you can participate. You should also make sure you are ready and willing to undergo a background check.

* Join the club. If your child is in middle school or high school, their school probably has a booster club. Why don't you join it? Many booster clubs revolve around sports teams, but there are also clubs for theater, speech or music. These clubs orchestrate fundraisers to grow revenue for their group, and they could certainly use your help.

* Get shopping. Teachers spend plenty of their own money to outfit their classrooms, so make sure you do your part by getting your child everything he or she needs for the school year. While you're at it, why not pick up a few things for your teacher's classroom as well?

Pobst says each school in the Jackson School District has a "wish list" of needs specific to the building. For example, she says, many teachers collect Kleenex and Clorox wipes at the beginning of the school year, but by midyear, those items run out, and donations are always appreciated.

Cutline:Mary Beth Heiligenstein, a student teacher from Southeast Missouri State University, helps third grade student, Triniti Richards, with her ASUS Transformer Book computer at Franklin Elementary. (Cutline Email/Stock:Southeast Missourian file photo)

Other needs may come up throughout the year, from scoreboards to pianos, McDonald says. Parents can also help by providing grants for teachers to secure classroom enhancements, she says, such as an author presentation, music festival or science lab equipment.

The Cape Girardeau and Jackson school districts also participate in Backpacks for Friday, where volunteers fill bags of food for low-income children to share with their families each weekend. Donations of food, snacks and hygiene items are needed -- not to mention the time to deliver and distribute the backpacks.

* Use your talents. Everyone has their own special talents that make them unique. Put yours to use in support of your child and his or her school. Some ideas: Help the class with a large project, serve as a tutor or career mentor, offer to be a guest speaker or allow a student to shadow you at work.

Talented with a camera? In Jackson, parents volunteer to take photos of students' artwork and submit it on artsonia.com, where it can be shared with faraway friends and family.

Use your talents to help, and your efforts will benefit students today and in the months and years ahead. What could be better than that?

Kim Nightingale packs up to go home after class at Blanchard Elementary School in Cape Girardeau. (Southeast Missourian file photo)

BrandPoint contributed to this report.